Acrimony
by yangri
Summary: For as long as she'd known, Itako's life had been dictated by a book. Now she wanted nothing more than to tear the pages apart. fem!Itachi/Deidara. Two-shot. A/N: My dudes, this isn't over yet. I'm taking a long time to update because I'm prioritizing other stories as well as life.


**_A/N: Where I combine two universes into one oh lordy lord lord_**

**_Also, Itako is fem!Itachi. It's just canon to me because the name for genderbent Itako in the Chibi Sasuke spinoff is Itako._**

**_Idk if Todoroki's dad is in the same generation as Present Mic and Eraserhead but for the sake of this fic he is and so is All Might_**

* * *

_Part 1_—_Rise of the Heir_

* * *

_Thump._

Itako slid her gaze from the leather-bound book that had just landed in front of her to meet her father's flinty gaze. His face betrayed no emotion, his lips set in a firm, hard line; his hands were steepled in front of him. Beside him, her mother was a silent presence, fixing her dull stare onto the wall behind her daughter. Her belly was perfectly rounded and heavy with Itako's unborn sibling.

Slowly, she ran her hand a over the cover, which had her name—_Uchiha Itako_—printed in small font across the middle. "What is this, otou-sama?" It was cold to the touch, as if her father had been keeping it in the kitchen's vast refrigerator room. She thought it felt like it was sapping her soul from her body, but she told herself it was merely her imagination.

His lips moved almost in slow motion. "It's your Life Plan, Itako."

_Life..._

_Plan?_

Without wasting anymore time, Fugaku instructed her to open it. Itako quietly obeyed, even when her hands ached from today's hand-to-hand combat session. Though her face remained unmoved, her mouth was quickly growing dry. In a clinical series of paragraphs, bullet points, diagrams... Her entire life was laid bare right in front of her. Her stomach lurched, but she kept her dinner down, the only sign of discomfort being when she gripped the page particularly hard before turning it.

Fugaku's harsh voice cut through the painful silence. "Is there a problem?"

"No, otou-sama." She swallowed a lump in her throat, though it wasn't visible. "However..." Itako had to fight to keep her voice from trembling. "May I inquire the purpose of my... Life Plan?" The words barely made it out of her mouth.

Her father frowned, as if he hadn't anticipated the question. "What you have in front of you are your instructions on how to properly serve the Uchiha Clan. You will treat this as sacred," he leaned across the table to push it closer to her, until nothing in the world could have made her look away from it, "and abide by it for the rest of your life. It is what's best for you, and best for the clan." As she flipped through the pages languidly, soaking up every detail without even activating her quirk, Fugaku continued to speak. "It is your duty to the family to uphold the Uchiha Clan's honor and continue the legacy. As you can see, you've already lived the first five years of your life according to the book."

It made sense. Itako's eyes became half-lidded as she continued reading. He'd signed her up for private calligraphy classes, piano and violin lessons; hired countless tutors that were quickly sacked because they had nothing else to teach her after a little more than one week spent on explaining their expertise.

"You are nearly six." Itako's eyes finally raised from the book to meet her father's gaze. It left no room for argument or objection. "Your mother and I," she didn't know why he bothered including her; it was obvious he had made the decision without consulting her, "have decided that it is time for you to know. You will live your life according to the plan. Do you understand?"

She closed the book.

"I said, _do you understand?_"

Itako exhaled. "Yes, otou-sama."

A muscle in her mother's face twitched as she agreed to her father's demand.

Fugaku relaxed. "Good. Dismissed."

Wordlessly, Itako nodded, bid her parents a polite goodnight, and left the room.

Mikoto hung her head as soon as Itako's barely audible footfalls dissipated into nothing, her hair curtaining her face. "She's a _child_," she whispered.

"She's an Uchiha," Fugaku rebuked calmly.

Out of sight and sound, Mikoto silently wept.

* * *

A month after Itako's sixth birthday, her mother dressed her up in a formal kimono and put powder on her face that she didn't care for. At the end of it, Itako looked like a doll.

"You're so pretty," Mikoto gushed. "I bet little Todoroki-ouji will think you're adorable!"

"Okaa-san," Itako said calmly, brushing an insignificant strand of hair from her face. "I don't want to start thinking about boys so soon." She was far too young for that, though she did often hear girls just a bit older than her discuss potential boyfriends during her scheduled walks around the family compound. They were the lower-born Uchiha, so she didn't take their words to heart.

"Of course not." Itako thought that Mikoto sounded a little more subdued than before, as if Itako had reminded her of something sad. She wondered what it could be, and whether it had anything to do with what her Life Plan had in store for her. Her train of thought broke then, wincing slightly as her eyes ached. She rubbed at them with the sleeve of her kimono, trying not to smear her eye makeup everywhere. It was difficult, but when she looked in the mirror, she looked fine.

"Oh no," Mikoto said worriedly, "did the eye-shadow irritate your eyes? I'm sorry, musume-chan—"

"No," Itachi said truthfully, "It was because I used the Sharingan for four hours today."

"Four hours?" There was a pause. "He... told me he would only make you do three."

But that had been before Itako had been outed as a genius, a once in a generation prodigy. She was only six, yet she had defeated countless of powerful family members in all sorts of games and arts—combat, music, art, shogi and other strategy games... It fascinated and horrified Mikoto.

Itako got up then, helping her mother off her knees as well.

"When did the doctor say Sasuke-kun is being born?" Itako asked, if only to make conversation. She barely spent time with her mother—ever since she could walk and talk, her father and her tutors and various instructors had been monopolizing her time. Mikoto was almost a stranger to her.

"Soon," replied Mikoto, "by the end of the month, certainly." Itako nodded. So her little brother would be a July baby then—that was nice to know. Mikoto's lips curled up in a small smile. "We don't actually know the gender yet, you know," she reminded gently, taking Itako by the hand and walking her out the house. Fugaku would have already gone ahead to the car, to make sure everything was in order.

"I know." Itako glanced up at her mother sincerely. "But I have a strong feeling, okaa-san."

Itako had had plenty of strong feelings in her life, though she hardly showed it. Most of the other Uchiha children assumed that she was nothing but a robot, even if they worshiped her due to the influence of their parents. In a way... They weren't wrong. But one of Itako's strong feelings had emerged on the night that Fugaku had presented her with her fate.

Even now, she didn't know what to make of it. The feeling, that was, not the plan.

The plan was easy.

All she had to do was follow it.

Itako knew how to follow orders, even when it was from a voiceless book.

When they arrived at the car, the chauffeur opened the door for them. He was eccentric, certainly, with his gravity-defying silver hair and eye-patch-covered left eye, but Itako didn't know that much about him. Just that her father didn't like him and only kept him around for reasons unknown to her.

Some people said that he had the Sharingan.

Itako didn't believe them. A non-Uchiha with a Sharingan? The very idea was laughable.

She didn't laugh very much, though.

Nowhere in the plan did it ever say to laugh.

* * *

It was official—Todoroki Enji was the first person that Itachi had ever actively disliked. He was the same age as her and handsome for a six-year-old, but everything else was just a mess, especially his personality. He was rude, abrasive, and just a spoiled brat in general.

He told her he wanted to be a hero.

Itako didn't understand how he would ever become one with that kind of attitude.

But because the adults were talking, Enji and Itako were lumped together. It was clear that Enji realized that if he left Itako alone, he would spend the rest of the night huffing and staring at the chandelier. So after dinner, he followed her around, making all sorts of one-sided conversation that annoyed Itako to no end. She didn't know if he realized just how intrusive he was being, or if he was just plain obtuse.

"Oi, Itako-_hime_, your mom looks like a _whale_."

In the end, it made no difference to her.

In front of dozens of Uchiha and Todoroki relatives, Itako whirled around and slapped Enji across the face. She didn't care that the main room where all the important relatives—her father, mother, and their business associates—were was just down the hall.

It became clear in their scuffle that Enji was trained—likely by his father, who was a retired pro hero—but she was still leagues ahead of him.

When the commotion had finally attracted the Todoroki and Uchiha Heads to the scene, Itako was seated on top of a defeated Enji's back, the boy's teeth gnashing as he tried and failed to get up.

Fugaku was livid.

Whatever deal they'd been discussing in the other room was called off. It was her fault, Itako knew, even when retired pro hero Todoroki Shouta claimed otherwise. It was probably convenient for him, Itako thought, that she had laid down the law on his son when he didn't want to go through with the deal. Gave him a great excuse, but at Itako's expense.

When they got home, Fugaku ushered Itako into his office and locked Mikoto out.

He made her stand in front of him, perfectly poised.

Itako couldn't help but gasp when her father lashed her across the face with one strong hand, sending her tumbling to the ground. Whatever cry was about to come out of her mouth next became stifled when she glanced up into his spinning Sharingan eyes. A shiver ran down her spine, and she bit her lip to stop herself from crying.

Her hair, which her mother had so meticulously put up, was a mess.

Never in her life had Itako ever felt so...

_Frail._

He said only one thing to her. "Shouta told me what happened." Fugaku moved over to her fallen, trembling form, more menacing than ever. "How _dare_ you defend your mother like _this_."

_What?_

Nothing... Nothing made sense to her.

When Fugaku tossed her out of the room after an illusion that deprived her of sight and sound, she was disoriented, but a growing thought was now at the back of her mind, burning harshly, bitterly.

_I have to be stronger. For Sasuke-kun and okaa-san. I have to protect them from otou-sama._

Fugaku had other ideas.

"Your mother doesn't want you to talk to her anymore, Itako. She's disappointed in you. You failed her. You failed the Plan. You failed your own life."

She knew then, that if it meant that Sasuke and Mikoto would be safe, she would lay down her life for the Plan.

* * *

Fugaku made sure Mikoto had as little contact with her daughter as possible, which wasn't difficult considering she was bed-bound most days by her unborn child. But he didn't stop Itako from attending Sasuke's birth, for which Itako was grateful beyond belief for.

Itako's breath hitched when she got to hold Sasuke for the first time. He was so small, so fragile, and he cried like there was no tomorrow. _Nothing about the Plan said anything about this, _Itako thought wildly. Yet, she couldn't find herself too troubled by that fact. Sasuke was _perfect_.

She was a big sister now. Sasuke's _aneki_.

So why did Mikoto look so sad?

* * *

Itako was ten, and Sasuke had recently turned four when her parents sat her down. It reminded her of the time that she had first been presented with the Plan, which she was following religiously.

There was no leather-bound book this time, merely the solemn faces of her parents. She hadn't seen Mikoto's perpetually tired visage in a long time, but she could have sworn she had more lines on her face than last time. Fugaku had let up a little over the years on Itako interacting with Mikoto, but there meetings were far and few in between.

"Otou-sama," Itako greeted with cold politeness, "What is this about?" _Did I do something wrong?_

Fugaku was blunt about it. "Recently, we've found you a suitable partner."

For a moment, Itako's mind shut down. Then she blinked. "Partner?"

"A husband," Fugaku clarified. "Whom you will marry when you come of age, and become the next leader of the clan. He is the son of a good friend of mine, and possesses a powerful Sharingan. I dare say, it might even rival yours." There was an underlying threat in his voice that Itako saw crystal clear—_don't ever let that happen or else_.

"I've never met such a person," Itako said honestly, as if she weren't freaking out inside. Husband? She... She didn't even have one _friend_, and now she was getting a husband. It made her sick to the stomach, and only years of practiced self-control stopped her from storming out of the room and setting the compound on fire.

"Then you will be today. You are to meet him at the east courtyard at noon. Do not be late."

"Yes, otou-sama."

"Dismissed."

* * *

She understood why her father kept her away from the other children. They were rough and undisciplined in Uchiha standards, and weren't worthy of being friends with her. They might have been Uchiha, but they were also of lowly birth.

But Itako was not ashamed to say that she had developed a soft spot for them. It was to the point where she had almost disobeyed her Life Plan when she saw Sasuke playing with some boys from the Branch House, laughing and squealing without a care in the world.

But with her Life Plan, she could only watch from afar as Sasuke grew up without her.

She saw Mikoto more than her younger brother, and her heart twisted and ached because of it. She was never there to hug him, to tell him it was alright when he scraped his knee and cried, to dry his tears with her sleeve before they pooled at his chin.

On the rare occasion that she got to speak with her mother, she would tell her about him, tell her about how he sometimes asked for her, always confused about the very existence of his big sister. Where was she? Why didn't he ever see her? Did she even live here? If she wasn't a ghost, then why didn't she play with him?

It was clawing away at her, and she wanted so desperately to force the chains of her Life Plan to bend, to just change her fate a little.

Even if he never got to see her, she wanted him to be proud of her, wanted him to love her the way she loved him. Wanted him to adore her the way he adored the Number One Hero: Shimura Nana.

She wanted...

_I want to be a hero._

But first, she had other things on her plate.

Namely, her new curly-haired Uchiha betrothed.

When she entered the courtyard, she found him image training, striking an imaginary foe as he danced about.

Her breath stuttered when their gazes met.

"Hi," the boy said, a little uncertain and shy. He must have realized who she was. "I'm Shisui."

He was doing his best to be polite, but she wanted to go a day without the stiff formalities. "Just called me Itako, Shisui-san."

In the end, they both ended up dodging the elephant in the room and being painfully stiff.

Itako sighed. The discomfort was definitely mutual.

* * *

_I'm thirsty._

Itako stifled a yawn as she got out of bed, blinking blearily as she smacked her lips, throat and mouth parched. Climbing out of her bed, she wandered to the kitchen and poured herself a glass of warm water.

She had drained the cup and was heading back to her room when she heard muffled voices coming from her parents' room.

"Fugaku, please! She's ten, for god sake...! Stop this madness, I beg of you!"

"Mikoto, enough!"

"Let her wed who she wants! Don't do this to her, _please_—!"

A resounding slap, then silence.

Itako's breath quickened, and she pressed herself against the outside wall of her parents' bedroom. The back of her eyes were burning and itching with a _sensation_—the sensation of _weakness_—and her lips turned downward as she began to cry noiselessly, unable to halt the flow of tears. Her footsteps quiet, she retreated back to her room and curled up on her bed, feeling ever so frail and ever so alone.

_I failed._

_I failed okaa-san. I promised I would protect her and now look what I've done. _Her resolve hardened, and stone walls slowly began to form around her. _The Plan. The Plan, the Plan, the Plan. It's the only thing that can protect okaa-san and Sasuke. I need to do better. I need to try harder._

The next day, she had a goal in mind.

Shisui blinked and gaped when she pulled him into a stiff hug, trying to work her legs around his hips. A red flush spreading across his cheeks, he pushed her off and stammered out, "W-What are you doing?"

"I..." Itako dropped her gaze. "We're to be married, aren't we? Shisui..._kun_."

He let out a deep breath. "Okay. Okay, stop for a sec." Kneading his forehead, he looked her in the eye as he pushed her off his lap. "Itako-chan, I'm not into you."

She blinked once. Then twice.

"Oh."

"Yeah. Look, don't take it the wrong way." Frowning, Shisui sat her down beneath the cherry blossom tree they usually met at. "You're _ten_ and I'm _fourteen_ and... This arrangement... It's not exactly what I imagined. Argh! That sounds even worse. Goddammit..."

Tentatively, she pulled his shirt sleeve. "Shisui-san," he perked up at the return of the usual honorific, "To be honest, I don't want this anymore than you do. But please understand—there are just things I have to do. Please don't get in my way." _Or I might hurt you._

Shisui's stare was flinty. Then he relaxed, leaning into the tree and closing his eyes. "Fugaku trained you well."

"Thank you."

"It wasn't a compliment."

Her heart sunk a little, but she ignored it.

"Eight years," he said, his tone a little gentler. "We have eight years, Itako-chan."

"For what?"

"To fall in love. Maybe we can't change the fates hanging over our heads, but we can try and control it as best as we can." Shisui looked down at where their hands nearly touched in the grass, pensive. "Let's just go at our own pace. That okay?"

Though her eyes were swollen from crying herself to sleep, Itako couldn't help but smile. Shisui wasn't a bad guy—he was just another unhappy child who was trying to make the best of his situation. "That sounds... wonderful."

Shisui returned the grin. "Good. I guess that makes us friends, then?" He held out his hand.

_Friends? _She had never had many of those in her life—the few children she had been allowed to see had all been older and grown distant and jealous when she outperformed them all. She did not miss them, for they had been forced friendships due to clan politics, but here was Shisui, offering his friendship of his own accord. Just because they were betrothed didn't mean that they were obligated to get along, let alone be friends. He was quickly becoming someone she could appreciate, and for that, she was glad.

Itako took his hand. "Friends," she echoed, and she meant it.

* * *

Four months after her twelfth birthday had passed, Itako eavesdropped on an important phone call her father was having in his office. It wasn't really her fault, per se, since he was yelling so loud that Mikoto could probably hear from the kitchen.

She was glad Sasuke wasn't here to hear the expletives coming from their noble sire's mouth, the boy sleeping over at a friend's tonight.

"What do you mean you can't make it?! Okay... okay, I get it. What?! Two months?! Hrrgh. Fine then, I'll be there by tomorrow morning."

And that was all that was important.

Two months.

He would be gone for two months.

Itako couldn't remember the last time she had felt so relieved or happy. Silently, she removed herself from the corridor and went outside to the courtyard, where she was to train until six-thirty. It was dinner with the family at seven, meaning that she had a half an hour break to herself to shower and whatnot. It was the same every day, except for weekends, which had time reserved to meeting with Shisui and spending time with him.

She smiled all the way through dinner—it was just her and Mikoto tonight, her father too busy with last minute packing.

"Okaa-san, who's Sasuke's friend again?" she asked over rice and eggplant stew.

"Ah, that would be Namikaze Naruto-kun. His father is Namikaze Minato, the number seven hero, and his mother is Uzumaki Kushina, the number eight hero." Mikoto looked pleased as she said, "Don't tell anyone, but the only reason they aren't higher on the list is because they prefer to stay away from the limelight." Her smile grew wistful. "Kushina and I were best friends in high school."

Itako swallowed her food. "What about now?"

Mikoto was still smiling as she spoke, but the mood had plummeted. "I haven't seen her since my wedding. Your father wanted me to cut ties with her, so... I did."

_Why do you always listen to him?_

A freezing feeling filled her heart.

_Why do _I_?_

The rest of dinner was eaten in relative silence.

* * *

The first thing she did when Sasuke got back from Naruto's house was approach him with a ripe tomato hidden behind her back.

"Sasuke," she beamed, "Do you want to do something today?"

"Aneki?" Sasuke stared at her for a good five seconds as if he had never seen her before. And, Itako realized with a longing sadness, that was almost the case. If there was one thing she had to be grateful to her father for, it was compulsory family meals, where she and Sasuke sat opposite each other.

"Hai!" Itako's smile wavered a bit, but she kept it there. "We could go get dango, or—"

"Ah, can we do that later?" It was like a cassette tape had sputtered out its contents in Itako's brain as her brother turned her down a little sheepishly. "I don't like sweets. And I'm busy today—I have to finish my homework."

With that, he side-stepped her and trotted off, not even noticing the tomato she had clutched behind her back.

_Oh. _Her gaze became dull.

She hadn't even realized that she had already lost him.

_Since when? _She bit her lip, feeling the rock in her stomach turn to a ball of ice. Itako glanced at the tomato she still held, and the temptation to throw it into the bin was great. But she didn't in the end, merely holding onto it and going about her day.

When she wandered into the kitchen like a lost child, Mikoto gave her a pitying glance. "I heard what happened. Itako-chan, I can go talk to him—"

"No."

Mikoto flinched.

And Itako smiled up at her bitterly. "It's okay. Don't bother him for me."

* * *

"You're in a mood today," Shisui panted as he narrowly dodged her strike. If that had hit him, it would have hurt like a damn bitch. They had been sparring for nearly two hours now with only small breaks.

"Hrrgh!"

He grabbed her arm and tossed her on her back, his brows furrowed. "Okay, talk."

"Hmph."

"Itako."

"Hn."

Oh great, she was devolving into more and more of the stereotypical Uchiha. Sighing, Shisui lowered himself, plopping down beside her. "What's up? I know your dad is out of the country, so it's probably not him. You never get mad at your mother either, so..." A knowing glint appeared in his eyes. It scared Itako, how well he knew her after only two years of being friends. "Sasuke?"

A reluctant nod from her only confirmed it.

"Blow you off, did he?" Shisui passed his hand through his already ruffled hair. "It's not entirely your fault, but I think you should have seen this coming." When her facial features pinched as if she had smelled sewerage, he quickly added, "I'm sure you can fix it though. Honest."

Groaning, Itako sat up, hanging her head. "It's not that. You weren't there. You didn't see how happy he was." _And his happiness had nothing to do with me. _"He's so young, but he already has his own life. And I don't want to take that from him."

"Itako—"

"No. You're not going to change my mind. I've made my decision. This is what's best for Sasuke."

He gave her a funny look. "You sound just like your old man."

"This is different, Shisui—"

"It really isn't. Who are you to decide what's best for him?"

"You're not going to change my mind," she repeated firmly, as if each word that came out of her wretched mouth didn't inflict a thousand needles upon her heart.

"Yeah, I know." Shisui stood, back arching in a stretch. "And that's what sucks."

What happened next would be just one of the things that altered her life for good.

"Good afternoon! Is that a truss tomato?!"

The two fighters looked up to see a brown-haired Uchiha girl peeking over the wall of their private courtyard. She had one of the brightest smiles on her face that Itako had ever seen, and it mesmerized her.

"It is," Shisui answered for her. "Hey—I think I've seen you around. You live in the house with that beautiful garden patch, right?"

"Hai! I'm Uchiha Izumi." With a heave, Izumi climbed over the wall and onto the other side. "Hup! As I was saying, that's a truss tomato, right?"

"It is," Itako confirmed, a little shyly. "Um, do you want it? I don't need it."

"Wow, thank you." The Uchiha heir blinked as the new girl got right in her face, blinking innocently. "Whoa... You're even prettier up close."

Shisui coughed into his hand.

"You're Itako-san, aren't you? My mother used to talk about you. You know, since you're the heir and all. It's nice to meet you!"

"It's... nice to meet you, too, Izumi-san." Itako picked up a few fallen kunai and awkwardly held it out to her, the only way she knew how to include her. "Do you want to join us? We were just having a friendly spar."

"Friendly is a bit of a strong word," Shisui piped up dryly, remembering the ferocity Itako had attacked him with just minutes before Izumi had made herself known. _At least she seems calmer now, _he noted with relief as he watched Itako show her new friend how to hold the ninja-inspired weapon. The brown-haired girl might not have known it, but she had really saved Shisui's ass from the further beating that would have surely ensued after the hard-hitting truths he had presented to Itako.

In the end, Izumi forewent the weapon. "I'm not that great with tools, but I'm a dab hand at taijutsu. Can we just do that instead?"

"Sure thing," Itako agreed immediately, and Shisui twitched a little.

_She's never that lenient with me, _he groaned inwardly. But his grumbling went away when Izumi gave him one of her megawatt smiles.

"Ne, Shisui-san, let's have a good fight!"

* * *

Itako soon found out that Uchiha Izumi was a bit of a pariah in their clan. Her house—she lived with her grandmother—was at the very outskirts of the Uchiha district, and the rest of their clan members turned their noses up at her. It turned out that her mother, an Uchiha, had left the clan to marry an outsider of common blood, and it was only through her grandmother that Izumi wasn't completely disowned as an Uchiha. Her parents had passed away a few years ago; Itako made sure not to mention them around her, as it was surely a painful thing.

Regardless, Itako enjoyed spending time with Izumi. Most of the time, Shisui hung out with them, too, and it was fun. It meant she got less sleep as she still had to complete the daily tasks in her Life Plan, but it was well worth it.

They were her best friends.

One snowy morning, Itako had just finished with a written correspondence to Todoroki Enji—they were forced to keep touch with one another by their fathers; all of their letters were curt and wasted no words—when there was a knock on the glass sliding door that led out to her private courtyard. Izumi was standing outside in a winter coat, carrying stationary and some books with her. Surprised, Itako let her in.

"Brr! It's freezing!" Izumi shuddered as she stepped in. "Whoaa! It's so warm in here—it feels like your whole house is heated."

"That's because it is," Itako informed her as she poured a hot cup of tea for Izumi. "Here, drink up. It's too cold to do anything outside today—is there anything else you want to do?"

"Well..." Her friend accepted the tea as her cheeks reddened a little from the warmth as well as mild embarrassment. "Here, have a look at this." Reluctantly, Izumi slipped something out of the thin folder she had brought along with her and showed it to Itako.

Her report card. Mostly As and Bs, but—

"A D in math?" Itako stared at the terrible grade. "Oh my."

"Mmhm. So I thought, well, since you're real smart, could you tutor me if you're not busy?" She giggled nervously, clapping her hands together. "Pretty please?"

"Well..."

Itako imagined her Life Plan swinging back and forth hypnotically in front of her face. In the end, she waved it off, and nodded. "Sure. I have time." _Izumi's more important than the Plan, especially now that otou-sama isn't here. _Her father would be back in two weeks, and she intended to make full use of the freedom she now had before it was back to being caged.

"Yes! Thank you soo much, Itako-chan!" Izumi wrapped her arms around her in a tight hug. "You're the best." She wrinkled her nose. "Way better than Shisui. I asked him first since I know you have a lot of things to do, but he said he was busy."

"He _is _in his second year of U.A," she reminded her friend, who pouted. "He can't spend all his time playing with kids like us anymore. Do you know how to do completing the square with quadratics?"

"Completing the _what_?"

"Never mind. Let's start from the beginning of your course." Itako paused whens he realized something. "Do you have a copy of your syllabus?"

"Oh yeah, I do, actually. Ohh... You don't go to school, do you?"

Itako shook her head. "No. But I've already completed my middle and high school education with my tutors. I don't need to go to school, it'll just be a waste of time."

"Aw, but school isn't just about studying." Izumi fiddled with the cute cat pen she had brought with her. "You meet a lot of great people there and make friends. I wish you went to school with me—then I can introduce you to my friends! And then we can all hang out _without _Shisui-baka."

_I wish I could, too, _Itako agreed silently. Out loud, she said, "What high school are you applying to?"

"Hm? Oh! U.A, just like Shisui. I'm aiming for the hero class, hehe."

"Shisui's in the hero class, too," recalled Itako, not looking up from the syllabus. "2-A, I believe. Do you understand similar triangles?" _U.A... both of my best friends are going there to become heroes. I want to be a hero, too. But otou-sama would never want me to be a public servant. _She stopped reading the syllabus. _But maybe... he'll let me go if I tell him that...!_

Izumi blinked when a smile started to form on Itako's normally neutral-looking face. "What is it?"

"I just had an idea."

* * *

It was just before New Year's when Fugaku arrived home, stern-faced as ever. The fun and the laughter she had shared with her friends stopped as soon as he returned, and it was back to living every day according to the Plan. When her father wasn't paying attention, however, she would make time for Izumi and Shisui. More so the former than the latter—she still saw Shisui every weekend, after all. Izumi was harder to get a hold of thanks to clan politics.

One night, she summoned the courage to approach him. It was all or nothing.

"Otou-sama."

"Itako. What is it you need?"

She exhaled sharply. "Please let me enroll into U.A."

Fugaku narrowed his eyes. "Explain yourself."

"If I attend, I will be receiving my education from one of the best academic institutes in the country. I don't intend to become a hero," that wasn't part of her Life Plan, "but I can use my education to bring the Uchiha to even further heights. I know it isn't part of my Life Plan, but this will be good for not only me, but the Uchiha. This is an opportunity that we cannot afford not to take."

Fugaku started writing.

Itako's throat bobbed.

"... I'll get you a recommendation."

And her heart soared. "Thank you... otou-sama."

She didn't know it, but this was the beginning of her rebellion.

* * *

Three years later, it continued.

"Oh, _no_." Todoroki Enji curled his lip at Itako as she entered her new classroom, looking impeccable in her uniform. "Why the hell are _you_ here?"

"Use your brain, Todoroki-san. Unless that's too hard for you," Itako retorted mildly, ignoring him completely as she stalked past him to get to her seat. It was the first day of school, and things were already heating up if Enji's fiery scowl was any indication. Even from her seat two rows behind him, she could feel the body heat he was radiating thanks to his fire quirk: Hellflame.

Looking around, Itako could see that there were currently three other students in the classroom besides her and Enji, all of them unique from one another. The blond boy sitting behind her with his hair over his left eye was seemingly asleep, slumped in his chair. A multitude of little clay animals littered his desk for some obscure reason. Paying little attention to him, she observed the others: a rather gloomy and tired black-haired boy sitting—or rather he was slumping against his table—in the same row as her and a pretty, straight-backed girl with white hair in a low ponytail—just like Itako's was.

"Ne, Uchiha-chan," Enji sneered as he addressed her, turning around in his seat. "I'm surprised you're here, actually, considering who your old man is and all."

Itako remained calm. "What are you saying?"

"You know what I mean. Your dad is a control freak—everybody who's anybody knows that."

"Ah." Itako lifted a hand and smiled apologetically. "I'm sorry, but all I heard was trash spewing out of your mouth. Do you need a tissue?"

He narrowed his eyes. "Play dumb all you want, but I have you figured out—"

"Can you two _please_ shut up?" The blond boy with the long hair sitting behind Itako finally snapped back to the waking world, looking haggard. As he stretched his arms out, Itako could see two mouths on his hands. "I was up all night working on my art, un. I don't need you two blabbermouths interrupting my much needed rest, y'hear?"

"That's not our problem, blondie!" snapped Enji. "Right, Uchiha?"

"My name's Deidara, you flaming ballsack!"

"We're not friends, so don't talk to me like we are."

"You _bitch_—"

"More classmates incoming. Save the language for later." That was from the haggard black-haired boy in Itako's row. He blinked tiredly at them, looking as if he had gotten even less sleep than the blond boy.

"AW YEAH!" The blond boy, Itako, and the black-haired boy all collectively winced (Enji grunted in displeasure) when another blond—this one as loud as a jackhammer—with his hair fluffed up at the front like the crest of an angry cockatoo practically kicked open the door and proceeded to do a number of extravagant poses. "PRESENT MIC IS IN THE HOUSE!"

"Present," Deidara started.

"Mic?" Itako finished.

"It's my future hero name!" 'Present Mic' shot finger guns at them, grinning enthusiastically. "And you guys are my new classmates, so hello and howdy!" Suddenly, he gasped dramatically. "Do my eyes deceive me? Could it be? Is that...?!"

Itako could see the black-haired boy trying to shrink into himself.

"AIZAWA SHOTAAA! It's been so long! I've missed you!"

Aizawa sighed. "I saw you last week."

"See?!"

"Hmph." Enji turned away from the boys, and Itako knew that he probably thought he was too good for them. At least he didn't seem to be intent on hounding her anymore.

"Hey." Itako turned in her seat to see Deidara, who was now wide awake. "You're an Uchiha, right?"

"Yes. My name is Itako. You're Deidara-san, right?"

"Yep." He grinned at her. "Future hero _and _artist in the making, yeah."

"That's nice," she offered politely.

"Hmm..." Eyebrows raised, Deidara leaned across his desk. "Not very talkative, are you?" The conversation ended there, with Deidara amusing himself with his clay critters. It surprised Itako when they suddenly lost all form and turned back into balls of clay for him to tuck into a bag but she made no mention of it. Instead, she focused on looking at her class as a whole.

_There's Enji sitting in the second row, Deidara behind me... the white-haired girl, Aizawa-san, and 'Present Mic'. I wonder what his real name is?_ That was all for now, but it was still early, so she had no doubt that she would meet the rest of her classmates later.

"Huff! Am I late?!" To her utter shock, the next person to appear at the door was none other than Uchiha Izumi.

Itako immediately stood. "I-Izumi-chan? You got in!"

"Ahh! Itako-chan!" With a skip in her step and a wide grin on her face, Izumi dodged the tables and took the seat next to her best friend. "I'm so glad we're together again! You weren't kidding when you said your dad let you go." Enji snorted at that, and Izumi gave him a sharp glance. "Anyway," she said, deciding she didn't like his attitude and pointedly ignoring him. "Let's make this a good year, okay?"

Itako returned her smile. "Of course."

As the girls settled down, Izumi whispered to her, "So you've already talked to everyone else?"

"Well... kind of? I'm not entirely sure, actually." It was mostly Present Mic's introduction that confused her—he'd been talking to _everyone_.

"That's okay." Friendly and open as ever, Izumi turned her head to greet Deidara. "Good morning! I'm Uchiha Izumi, and you're...?"

"Deidara," he returned the greeting with a nod. "Just Deidara—no family name so don't worry your pretty little head about it, un."

Itako left Deidara and Izumi to chat and get to know one another, focusing on the students that were walking through the door. There were so many more people coming in now, and before long, the entire classroom was full and even their teacher—in all his hero costume glory—was here.

"Good morning, students!" Their homeroom teacher gave them a hero-like smile. But beneath that smile, Itako noticed with a thoughtful frown, he exuded an almost Uchiha-like aura. He was the type of person who would go down hard on someone for their mistakes and pick apart what they did do right. His type of training would either make or break them—she was sure of it. And looking around, she wasn't the only one to pick up on this—Todoroki Enji looked more serious than she had ever seen him before and Aizawa Shota's eyes were at least two centimeters wider than they were before. The straight-backed, white-haired girl was sitting up straighter than ever, and even Deidara wasn't messing around with his playthings under the table. "I welcome you all to U.A, where most of you will be spending the next three years working toward becoming heroes! I warn you now: this is not a course for the faint-hearted and you will not be coddled. Most of you may know me by my hero name—_Gran Torino_—but in the classroom, you will refer to me as Sorahiko-sensei. As well as being your homeroom teacher, I will also be teaching you zygotes Heroics."

Itako wasn't entirely sure why, but the students seemed to be utterly hypnotized by his introduction. Even Izumi's eyes were big and shining as she regarded the formidable hero who was to be their teacher.

"Sugoi," Present Mic muttered under his breath. "We get the honor of knowing his name...!"

"Stand!" Gran Torino suddenly barked, and the entire classroom jumped up as if they were one single entity, many people stuttering nervously as they all chorused at once.

"HAI!"

Nodding in approval but keeping his eye sharp for those who had been especially shocked by his voice, he made for the door. "Come on, you zygotes. Your first class begins now."

"Etto..." Everybody turned to Izumi, who had raised her hand. "What about orientation? Aren't we supposed to go to the hall?"

The murmurs of agreement she got didn't faze Gran Torino in the least. Instead, he let out a belly-deep laugh that sent shivers down their spine. "Orientation?" He swiped his pointer finger beneath his eye as if he were wiping a tear away. "This _is _your orientation! Now file out!"

The pushing and shoving for the door had Itako swept up in the crowd. Clearly, nobody wanted to be the straggler closest to their new teacher.

* * *

Present Mic's name was actually Yamada Hizashi and he had a quirk which suited his loud personality, to say the least. The first 'lesson' (or rather, orientation) was spent with the entire class going through a series of exercises to gauge their quirk ability. For Itako, watching Yamada hurl the ball away with a literal shriek was entertaining.

"I'm secretly relieved," Izumi whispered to Itako as they waited for their turn. "I thought he would threaten us with expulsion or something. He seems like the type."

"Sorahiko-sensei?" Before Itako could answer, the white-haired girl standing behind them piped up. She gave a little smile that was more wary than anything else. "I think for him, expulsion is the easy way out. He'll run us ragged before any expelling will happen."

"Huh." Izumi cringed. "That's even worse... Oh, you're...?"

"Yuki Rei," she said softly.

"I'm Uchiha Izumi, and this is my best friend, Uchiha Itako! It's nice to meet you, Yuki-san."

"Next," Gran Torino boomed. "Yuki Rei! Come up here."

"Ah, it's my turn."

"Good luck," offered Izumi, Itako nodding along. Both of them possessed similar quirks that boiled down to energy manipulation, and thus had thrown the ball similar distances. Itako, who had unlocked her Sharingan (resulting in enhanced abilities), managed to win against Izumi on this test, though.

To be honest, Itako wasn't expecting much. And judging by the static expressions of her classmates, neither were they. So it surprised everyone into literal gasps when Rei threw the ball in the air and smacked it across the field using a pillar of ice she had summoned in a split second. Pleased, the girl trotted back into place as Gran Torino wrote down her distance with an slight nod of approval.

"Gah! Your quirk is amazing!" Izumi was still gaping as they walked to their next ability test, which took place in a track field. So running was involved then.

Rei rubbed the back of her head shyly, a blush spreading across her cheeks at the compliment. "Thank you, Uchiha-san, er..." Bemused, she glanced at Itako.

"Just call us by our first names," Itako encouraged. "That way, we can avoid confusion."

"Hai! Thank you very much—you can call me by my first name, too."

Another thing started then, one that Itako grew to cherish.

The friendship and camaraderie she had with Izumi and Rei.

* * *

Squinting at the hand he held, Shisui sighed. "Fold."

"Haha! Sucker!"

"What?!"

Izumi stuck out her tongue at the older boy as she revealed her crappy hand and basked in the success of her bluff. "What can I say? I'm just that good."

"That's cheating!"

"Actually, it's well within the rules and even encouraged," Itako pointed out, having folded as well. But in her defense, her hand was even crappier than Izumi's—Shisui had the best one out of the three of them. With a sly smile, she added, "Are you sure you know how to play poker, Shisui?"

"Hardy-har-har. Laugh it up. You two will be _crying _when I win all your chips." Grumbling, he was about to hand the deck of cards over to Izumi when he glared at her suspiciously. "Hold on—you're not going any weird things with these, right? No Gilbreath shuffles or anything?"

"Please! You can't do a Gilbreath shuffle with only one pile of cards."

Reluctantly, he handed Izumi the cards, stiffening slightly when their hands touched.

Itako didn't miss it, but made no comment.

* * *

It was halfway through her first year at U.A that she realized that the boy who sat behind her—Deidara—actually wasn't particularly fond of her. Actually, she would even say, he seemed to dislike her.

She didn't know why—they didn't even talk most of the time. She had her own circle of friends—Izumi and Rei—and he had his (that sketchy fellow called Hidan who she suspected was only here to mess around in the General Studies course, and another boy she didn't know the name of).

So she fully expected something to happen when they were grouped up along with Rei and Enji for a school project.

"Deidara-san." Itako focused on immediately addressing the problem. "I know you don't like me." A slow, languid blink. "But let's get along for the sake of the project."

And that was all she thought it would take. She was wrong.

"Is that really all you have to say, hm? As arrogant as I expected."

_What? _Itako spun around, shocked. Then a muscle in her cheek twitched and she refrained from making her tone too barbed. "That's awfully funny, you know, coming from you."

"Tsk." He gave her a flinty stare as he walked past. "What's funny is how you keep on proving my point time and time again, un."

_What... just happened? _"Where are you going?" She jogged after him. "We're supposed to meeting with Rei and Todoroki-san at the library to discuss our project."

"I know. I just don't care." Smirking, he went on his way.

"This goes toward our grade, Deidara-san!"

"I have better things to do than sit in a room with you and that flame-haired bastard in it. At least Yuki-san is tolerable."

Itako glared after him. "Fine. Do things your way."

As soon as she sat down at the table Rei and Enji were occupying, the latter immediately pressed down upon her with questions. "Where's the dumb blond? This is supposed to be a group meeting!"

Well, for all of his arrogance and buffoonery, at least the Todoroki was serious about his studies.

"He went off to who knows where," groused Itako, opening up a history book. "We don't need him here."

"Maybe not, but he'll still end up getting credit while we do all the work!" snapped Enji. "Go find him."

Her voice was as cold as Rei's ice. "I don't take orders from you, Todoroki-san."

"And I won't take backtalk from you, _Itako-hime_."

She slammed the book down and gave him a filthy look. "Enough! Let's just get started already."

"Ano..." Rei spoke up. "I'm sorry, Itako-chan, but I have to agree with Enji-san. It will be unfair if Deidara-san doesn't contribute anything."

Two against one. Dammit. Sighing, Itako stood. "Alright, I understand. I think I know where he went anyway."

Enji rolled his eyes. "Oh, so _now_ you go? Come on, Rei-chan, let's actually get some work done."

_That's what I was suggesting we do two seconds ago! _Itako couldn't recall anybody else besides Enji who had ever made her temper rise so fast. Ever since he had insulted her mother at that social event, she bore nothing but ill will toward him.

A black cloud hanging over her head, she stormed down the corridor and to where the art rooms were. It was after school, so most of the students had gone home or back to their dorms already. One of the classrooms she passed had Izumi in it, but she didn't bother to check which one. Her best friend was busy with her own group after all. Personally, Itako would have much preferred the group she had been given, even if Rei was suffering Enji and Deidara with her. Izumi had been lucky enough to be put with some of the most easygoing as well as hardworking people in their class: Yamada Hizashi, Aizawa Shota, and Hakamata Tsunagu.

Without a care, she threw open the first art room she encountered. Sure enough, Deidara was inside and working on a clay sculpture. He turned with a scowl on his face. "Hidan, how many times do I have to tell you not to open the fucking door so hard—oh." His expression soured like he had just eaten a lemon. "What? Come to drag me to the girl scout meeting? Hm?"

A part of her wanted to say _yes_, but another small part of her didn't want to return to the library. She wouldn't even feel bad about leaving Rei with Enji either—she seemed to be the only one in the whole class who could tame his terrible temper, and he was never harsh with her. Making up her mind, Itako pulled a chair up next to Deidara and sat stone-faced.

The blond stared at her like she had just grown another head. "What the hell are you doing?"

"I'm here and I don't feel like dealing with Todoroki-san."

Deidara huffed. "Whatever. Just don't get in my way, un."

Itako acted like she didn't exist as Deidara continued to work on his sculpture—it was a bird perched on a branch with its wings spread magnificently. Though he didn't know it, she appreciated every fine detail of his creation—the realistic plume, the curve of the avian's break, the lines imitating a tree-like texture on the branch. Even with her Sharingan, which allowed her to copy movement to some extent, she would never be able to replicate the sort of skill he exhibited.

If the debates he had in class with multiple classmates were anything to go by, he was extremely passionate about his art. It made her wonder why he wanted to be a hero—he had a great and powerful explosion quirk, but his heart seemed to be more set on his art than anything else.

"Why don't you like me?" she suddenly said. "Did I do something to offend you?"

He paused in his work. "Everything about you drives me insane," he said bluntly. "Top of the class, heir to a rich family, a trust fund kid... You could go anywhere in life and you don't even have to lift a finger for anything, un. And to top it all off, your attitude is sickening. Always acting cold and unconcerned, never giving anyone the time of day. I hate people like you."

_Is that really how he sees me? _She didn't know what this feeling was, but she didn't want him to see her that way. "I'm sorry you feel that way."

"Hah! Don't be."

For a fifteen-year-old, he was surprisingly bitter about something. _His position in life_, she realized. The lack of family name, why his uniform always looked so dusty... Her throat bobbed as she processed the information.

"You know, Deidara-san, you have something that I don't."

"Doubt it."

"I'm serious."

"Yeah? Well, enlighten me." He didn't look at her, more focused on his work than anything else. It was clear he was losing interest in her, so she would make it quick.

"Freedom. You can do anything you want to do if you put your mind to it. Maybe you have to work harder than anyone else, but at least you have that. You're right—I am privileged. But with privilege comes..." Itako hesitated. "Responsibilities," she decided in the end. "I will never have the same degree of freedom you have, and for that, I envy you, Deidara-san."

A terse silence followed.

"Stop being frigid," he said abruptly. She blinked. "And we'll see." With a glint she couldn't entirely discern in his eye, he turned to her, and her eyes were drawn to the patch of clay he had accidentally smeared on his cheek. Quickly, she looked away and stared at her hands instead. "Hey, look at me."

She did. Were his eyes always that blue? She regretted that she had never paid much attention to him, the boy quietly stewing in emotion behind her each day.

"First step to getting along: eye contact." Deidara smiled, but it was more like a smirk than anything else. "When that's established, all else follows."

That day—

_He took her breath away._

* * *

Two weeks later, the project was completed. Rei and Enji were pleased with the outcome, as were Itako and Deidara. Itako thought that she would be seeing less of Deidara after the project, but it turned out to be the opposite.

She was eating lunch with Izumi and Rei when Deidara approached their table.

"Hi!" It was Izumi, friendly as ever, who spotted him first. "Want to sit with us?"

"Thanks, but I'm just here for Itako-san, un." He grinned a little sheepishly. "I need her to help me with something."

"Really?!" Itako was taken aback when Izumi almost squealed. "Take her already!"

"Eh?" She exchanged a glance with Deidara, who shrugged. "Well, okay. What do you need help with?"

"Ah... that's kind of embarrassing." They moved to the library, but upon discovering how full it was, made for the art room instead. It was the very same one that they had first pushed their differences aside a little to get the project done, only that they weren't alone this time.

There was a young red-haired man painting something on a... puppet?

"Sasori! My man!" Deidara exclaimed cheerfully, lifting his hand. "How's it going, hm?"

"Deidara," the man returned tersely, pushing up his square glasses. "If you two are going to make out in here, give me a warning, please."

"What?!" Deidara glared at him while Itako looked away, unsure of how to respond. "Don't be a troll. I just need her help on math, that's all." He shot her an apologetic glance but she didn't see it.

"That's what the library is for," Sasori pointed out dryly.

"Yeah, well, it was full, okay? What is this, an interrogation?" Grumbling, he took a seat at one of the dry paint-splattered tables, crossing his arms. Itako followed suit, sitting straight-backed. She noticed that his bag was already on the floor—he must have done some pre-planning.

It was like with Izumi all over again, Itako told herself as she tried to relax her posture. "What don't you understand?"

"Oh, mostly algebra. It's confusing as shit, un."

He even had the same problem as Izumi, funnily enough. The two would make quite a pair. "Well, let's start here, then..."

As the afternoon passed, Itako relaxed more and more around him. When the impromptu tutoring session was over, they agreed to meet up again ("_Hopefully_ Sasori-no-Danna won't be watching our backs next time." "I was here first, brat. Now get to class.") when Deidara requested so.

And so they did.

Before long, it became a regular thing.

Itako sometimes wondered how she had let herself be roped into this. It wasn't like he was offering anything in return.

_Oh, but he is. He's offering me his time, and his friendship. Of that, I'm certain. _She was deep in thought as she sparred Shisui, who nearly got her in the face when she spaced out for too long.

"Itako~!" Shisui sing-songed. "Pay attention or you won't be looking so pretty!"

"It's funny how you never seem to go for any face shots when you spar Izumi, and her taijutsu is on par with mine."

"Guh! What are you insinuating?!"

"Why, nothing."

* * *

Sasori had been around U.A for a while now. He had graduated from the General Studies course the year before that blond-haired brat came, and returned to work as an assistant to the law teacher. Once his internship was over, he would be setting off to the best law firm in the country and working there. Once that was over, he would start his own law firm and become his own boss.

Yes, he had it all planned out, and it was sure to be a peaceful ride.

But he hadn't really accounted for the brat, who he shared a dorm with. The fewer and odd number of students that year had let to some unorthodox arrangements.

"Deidara, shut up!" Sasori barked as he slammed his pillow over his head, trying to block out the audacious song he was singing in the dark.

"You shut up!"

"Hrrgh!" Throwing off his blankets, he turned on the lights and stormed into the small kitchen and poured himself a warm glass of water. When he returned, Deidara was sitting up in his bed, looking pensive. Sasori rolled his eyes. "What are you thinking about? What it would be like if you had more brain cells?"

"Nah, I'm not like you, un." Deidara tapped his fingers on the wooden frame of the bed. "I'm thinking about... Uchiha Itako."

"Hm? The girl that you were with that day?" _Don't tell me he's in love already._

"Yeah. I feel a little bad, actually." He hunched forward, his hair falling over his face. "I completely misjudged her, un. I'm surprised she even talks to me, actually."

"Me too."

"Oi, you aren't supposed to agree."

"It's not just because of your shitty personality," Deidara glowered at him for the jibe, "But because she's the heir to the Uchiha Clan. They're practically royalty in Japan. Best not to cross them."

"What's that supposed to mean, hm?"

"I mean," Sasori said sharply. "Don't get yourself involved with their affairs, or you'll be in the firing line."

Deidara grimaced. "They wouldn't really kill me, would they?"

"Depends on how grave the offence is."

Sasori left it at that, turning off the light and climbing into bed. He pulled the blankets up to his shoulders, just like how his mother used to tuck him in. "Good_night_, Deidara."

"Yeah, whatever... Night, old man."

Before he fell to the wiles of dreamland, Sasori had one last thought.

_I hope to God he doesn't get screwed over by that Fugaku._

* * *

"Graduation is nearly upon us!" Yamada Hizashi—otherwise known as Present Mic (they had chosen their hero names already)—declared as he and Aizawa walked down to the ice-cream shop they frequented.

"Aa."

"Isn't this exciting? Huh? Hmm? Eraserhead! Look!"

"What?" Aizawa had to blink twice at the most peculiar sight he had ever seen besides Yamada. "Is that Deidara-san? With Itako-san? Odd... Is there something going on between them?" He didn't know them too well, but they seemed to be decent people. Not like that show-off in 1-B, Yagi Toshinori.

"Whatever it is, I wish them the best of luck." Hizashi nodded particularly seriously. "Come on, Eraserhead, let's go to a different place and leave them alone."

"Stop calling me that."

"Eraserhead!"

"Hrmm..."

Both Itako and Deidara were peculiar people. Itako hadn't chosen a hero name at all, much to Sorahiko-sensei's displeasure, but due to her father's influence, he hadn't pushed it. Deidara was odd just because he was Deidara. Hero name including. That was it. Deidara: The Explosive Artist Hero! Then again, considering he had let Yamada of all people pick his hero name, Aizawa didn't have much room to judge.

"Don't buy more than you can eat again," he reminded Yamada.

* * *

"Deidara, I'm really not sure. I should be home by now."

"I told you to stop being frigid, didn't I?" Deidara nudged her side. "Besides, it's cheap, so I'm treating you, un. Don't complain, alright? This is a good thing—we hardly ever hang out after school."

They sat down as they waited for their food to arrive, Itako looking slightly perturbed.

Noticing her genuine discomfort, Deidara dropped his pushy attitude. "Are you really going to get in trouble for this?"

"Most likely, yes."

Sighing, he stood. "Then I'm sorry. I'll take you home, un."

"The clan compound isn't far from here—I can walk home myself." _Besides, it's best if he doesn't meet you._

But he insisted, and so they abandoned the shop after Deidara got his food as takeaway (it was a good thing that he had chosen the churro snacks over ice-cream). The sun was beginning to set as they crossed a bridge that looked over the harbor.

"Man, you get a scenic view every day," he remarked as he glanced over to the horizon. "Aren't you lucky, hm. Itako, wait. Can we talk?"

"What is it, Deidara?"

He folded his arms across his chest as a breeze blew through. "How long, huh?"

"What?"

"How long do you plan on living under his control like this? Sorry—I meant _existing_. Because what you're doing right now isn't living, un." Itako's eyes widened, but he wasn't done. "I won't pretend to understand what it's like at your place, but you don't have to lie down and take this! This is _your _life," he stepped forward, taking her by the hands, "So why won't you live it like you want to? Life is fleeting, Itako—keep existing like this and you're going to die with nothing but regrets and what-ifs, un."

She dropped her gaze. "It's not that simple. It's not just my life, Deidara."

"Dammit, just be selfish for once!"

"I _can't_!" Itako finally looked up, eyes blazing with a kind of desperation that didn't suit her. Deidara stepped back a little. "I have my little brother and my mother! I have to protect them from my father!" She was drowning, drowning so so fast.

"And that's fine! But Itako... Don't do it at the cost of your life. I doubt that this is what your mother and brother want."

"You don't know that." She was shivering now, and Deidara's throat bobbed guiltily as her breathing quickened. "I'll never let him lay a hand on them. Please don't do this to me, Deidara. _Please_. Stop making me choose as if there's a choice." Her knees wobbled then, and Deidara managed to catch her before they buckled beneath her weight.

"Shit, I'm sorry. Itako. Itako! Calm down, please. It's okay. I'm not forcing you to do anything, okay? Calm down." Her body stiffened against his one last time before she finally relaxed. "Shit... What the fuck did he do to you?"

Her response was so quiet and muffled that he almost didn't hear.

"What he thinks is best for the clan."

* * *

That night, she couldn't sleep.

Never in her life had she ever wanted so badly to break free of the chains around her wrists. But everything she loved was imprisoned with her in this household, and she knew very well that she couldn't take them with her.

She envisioned Deidara reaching out to her, begging her to take his hand.

Subconsciously, she reached up to her ceiling. "Will they be alright?" she asked aloud. "If I were to abandon my duties, will they be alright?"

There was a knock on the door.

"Itako-chan?" her mother's soft voice carried through. "Are you awake?" The door opened, and light entered her room. Itako sat up as Mikoto gave her an apologetic stare. "I'm sorry. I woke you, didn't I?"

"No, no, you didn't." Itako shifted so that Mikoto could take a seat on the edge of her bed. "Okaa-san?"

"I've been letting it go on for years now."

"What?"

"You know what I mean." Itako's heart skipped a beat. "Your father's controlling nature." Tears slipped down her beautiful face. "I'm so sorry, Itako-chan. I'm so sorry that I can't stand up to him. The blame is mine, but the punishment is yours."

"It isn't," she insisted, feeling like her heart was being torn to pieces as her mother cried. "Okaa-san, it's just how things are. I've gotten used to it—"

"No one should have to be used to this kind of life! It's not a life, Itako, it's merely... merely existence!"

_"How long do you plan on living under his control like this? Sorry—I meant existing. Because what you're doing right now isn't living, un."_

"And Sasuke." The older woman hugged her hands to her chest, more tears falling. "You don't know it, Itako-chan, but he has his own Life Plan, too."

_What?_

Her heart dropped to her stomach.

"N-No... Please tell me that isn't true!"

"Daughter, listen to me." Grabbing her hands, Mikoto met her saddened stare. "If you let this go on forever, you won't have a life to live at all. Sasuke and I... we'll be alright. He hasn't laid a hand on me in years, and Sasuke works so hard to please him that he's starting to focus a little more positively on him."

"I _cannot _abandon you like this, okaa-san."

"Musume-chan. I am _ordering _you. For once in your life, take an order from me. Please, Itako-chan, I'm begging you."

* * *

They met in the art room one day. It was a week into their second year, and the workload was heavier, but they had free periods to see each other.

Itako tapped her leg nervously as she sat next to Deidara, watching him paint his clay sculpture. It was the same bird one she had seen him craft so finely all those months ago.

Without really thinking, she leaned forward and touched her forehead to the back of his shoulder. Deidara paused, glancing down at the black-haired girl. Smiling, he patted her head. "Yeah?"

"Deidara..."

It became so quiet that a pin could have dropped and they would have heard it.

Itako looked up at him, and he swore he felt his heart explode at how wide and guileless her eyes were. Normally, they were slanted and dull and full of worry and caution. Deidara inhaled sharply. "Yes, Itako?"

"Will you go out with me?"

Deidara leaned in close, narrowing his eyes and examining her expression carefully. "You have something on your face, un."

"Eh?"

"Right... here."

Her eyes widened when he pressed his lips against hers.

"How unfair," she gasped when they parted, a heavy blush on her face. "You didn't even answer me."

"Hah!" He laughed, putting his hands around her cheeks and touching his forehead to hers. "Wasn't that enough of an answer, hm?"

Her life got brighter that day.

* * *

"Itai! Shisui-_baka_, that _hurt_!" whined Izumi as she cradled her arm on the ground, tears welling up in her eyes. "Ow..."

"Ah!" Stricken, Shisui knelt beside her. "I'm so sorry but this was a spar and—"

She grabbed him and threw him on the ground beside her. "Hah! Gotcha!"

"Cheater!" he screeched, but couldn't suppress a laugh. "You cheat at everything, Izumi-chan! Poker, sparring, skipping stones in the pond—"

"How do you cheat at stone skipping?" Itako wondered aloud, looking up from her book. She was sitting at the base of the cherry blossom tree in the courtyard, completing the reading that Gran Torino had assigned.

Her friends ended up wrestling on the ground, leaving Itako to sigh in fond exasperation. _They'll never change._

"Aneki."

Itako turned to see Sasuke, now eleven years old, approaching her with a frown on his face. What she saw of him these days was mostly frowns. It made her heart hurt, but she had long been out of Sasuke's life.

Sasuke stopped when he stood over her. "Spar with me."

She blinked. "Are you sure?"

"Don't look down on me!" Sasuke suddenly snarled, and Itako almost knocked her head against the tree.

_Look down on him? Where did that come from?_

"I'm sick of being treated like second-class. By you, by otou-sama... I've had enough of it, _Itako_! The only way I'll _ever_ be worth anything in otou-sama's eyes is if I surpass _you_!"

Izumi and Shisui had stopped wrestling by now, giving the siblings concerned looks.

Itako remained silent. Then she closed her book, placing it down. "Very well. Shisui, Izumi, move." They obeyed, and Sasuke gritted his teeth as he saw more of their father emerge in her demeanor.

Reluctantly, Itako shifted into her usual stance, Sasuke doing the same. It occurred to her that she had never actually seen him fight before. He wasn't trained by Fugaku, but one of the other members of the Main House, so his style wouldn't be the same as hers.

Each of the siblings performed the Seal of Confrontation. Then, with a mighty yell, Sasuke shot toward her; his quirk, if she recalled correct, was speed-related, and he didn't have the advantage of a Sharingan to boost his powers. The boy was certainly fast, but Itako was even quicker. She zipped around him, launching a strike that he just managed to block.

Ten minutes into the fight, Sasuke's hackles were raised to their highest point. "Stop going easy on me!" he spat. "I can take you!"

_No, otouto_, she thought sadly. _You can't. _"Sasuke," she intoned when he just started fighting wildly and sloppily. "Sasuke, that's enough!" A gust of wind flew through the courtyard, and Izumi and Shisui shielded their eyes from the wind. They didn't see what happened next; when they turned back to the battle, Sasuke was standing stiffly, and Itako behind him, her gaze lowered.

Then Sasuke fell, unconscious, Itako catching him before he hit the ground.

He was tucked back into bed and she spent the rest of the day in a daze before realizing that they hadn't done the Seal of Reconciliation.

* * *

_Next: Part 2—Fall of the Heir_


End file.
